In sport, a debenture is defined as a certificate of agreement of loans which is given under the company's stamp and carries an undertaking that the debenture holder will get a fixed return (fixed on the basis of

interest rate An interest rate is the amount of interest due per period, as a proportion of the amount lent, deposited, or borrowed (called the principal sum). The total interest on an amount lent or borrowed depends on the principal sum, the interest rate, th ...

s) and the principal amount whenever the debenture matures. The terms may also include ancillary benefits such as an option to buy tickets at a favourable price, as well as or instead of interest. The term stems from the financial concept of a

debenture In corporate finance, a debenture is a medium- to long-term debt instrument used by large companies to borrow money, at a fixed rate of interest. The legal term "debenture" originally referred to a document that either creates a debt or acknowle ...

. A large number of sporting organisations have issued debentures to raise money, to allow their fans to gain a financial stake in the club, to foster a sense of community, and in some cases to fund new construction.

Royal Albert Hall

An early example of debenture holders having rights to seats at venues was the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

in London, where about 1,200 of the hall's 5,500 seats were provided on 999-year leases when it opened in 1871 to help finance its construction costs, allowing access to most of its music, sporting and other events, subject to an annual service charge. The debentures can be passed on or sold, and the tickets to individual events can be resold if the debenture holder does not wish to attend.

Tennis

The organisers of the

Wimbledon Tennis Championships The Wimbledon Championships, commonly known simply as Wimbledon, is the oldest tennis tournament in the world and is widely regarded as the most prestigious. It has been held at the All England Club in Wimbledon, London, since 1877 and is p ...

, The All England Club, issue their debenture holders a ticket for each day of the tournament. Furthermore, only debenture holders are permitted to sell their tickets to third parties, either privately or through vendors such as WimbledonDebentureHolders.com.

Rugby

A rugby debenture is somewhat different as, in the most part, no money in the form of

interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a borrower or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is disti ...

is returned to the

lender A creditor or lender is a party (e.g., person, organization, company, or government) that has a claim on the services of a second party. It is a person or institution to whom money is owed. The first party, in general, has provided some property ...

but the rights to obtain tickets for a seat in that ground. The exact terms of the debentures vary from

issue Issue or issues may refer to: Publishing * ''Issue'' (company), a mobile publishing company * ''Issue'' (magazine), a monthly Korean comics anthology magazine * Issue (postal service), a stamp or a series of stamps released to the public * '' ...

to issue but will be covered in the main here.

Charlton Athletic Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...

also used this financial method to aid their move back to The Valley.

Welsh Rugby Union

These debentures carry no interest on the amount invested and the advantage of holding said debenture is the right to obtain tickets at the

Millennium Stadium The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national r ...

, the home of the

Welsh Rugby Union The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU; cy, Undeb Rygbi Cymru) is the governing body of rugby union in the country of Wales, recognised by the sport's international governing body, World Rugby. The WRU is responsible for the running of rugby in Wales, ...

where

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

play in the

Six Nations Championship The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The current champions ar ...

. The serial numbers on the debentures denominate the expiry date (although some are renewable and / or renewed earlier), starting with: The WRU has changed some of the numbers during the term of the debenture.

Rugby Football Union

These are issued by the RFU and permit the holder to 10 years rights to the

ticket Ticket or tickets may refer to: Slips of paper * Lottery ticket * Parking ticket, a ticket confirming that the parking fee was paid (and the time of the parking start) * Toll ticket, a slip of paper used to indicate where vehicles entered a tol ...

issue; they are transferable and the principal sum invested is returned 75 years from date of issue. An RFU debenture confers on the debenture holder the right to purchase, at face value, one ticket for Rugby Union events at

Twickenham Stadium Twickenham Stadium () in Twickenham, south-west London, England, is a rugby union stadium owned by the Rugby Football Union ( RFU), English rugby union governing body, which has its headquarters there. The England national rugby union team play ...

for a given period, currently 10 years (with the exception of a small number of business debentures in the South Stand which confer ticket rights for 15 years). A debenture is fully repayable, currently after 75 years, but bears no interest. The following is the current debenture issue:

Other sports organisations

Other sports organisations which issue debentures in a similar fashion include: * Arsenal Football Club *

Donington Park Donington Park is a motorsport circuit located near Castle Donington in Leicestershire, England. The circuit business is now owned by Jonathan Palmer's MotorSport Vision organisation, and the surrounding Donington Park Estate, still owned b ...

Hampden Park Hampden Park ( Scottish Gaelic: ''Pàirc Hampden''), often referred to as Hampden, is a football stadium in the Mount Florida area of Glasgow, Scotland. The -capacity venue serves as the national stadium of football in Scotland. It is the n ...

Murrayfield Stadium Murrayfield Stadium (known as BT Murrayfield Stadium for sponsorship reasons, or popularly as Murrayfield) is a Rugby stadium located in the Murrayfield area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It has a seating capacity of 67,144 making it the largest sta ...

Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club is one of eighteen first-class county clubs within the domestic cricket structure of England and Wales. It represents the historic county of Nottinghamshire. The club's limited overs team is called the ...

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 2002 to 2003. The stadium ...

Not all sporting debentures provide an entitlement to free tickets. Some organisations, such as the Millennium Stadium, merely give holders the right to purchase a ticket for events.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Debenture (Sport) Cricket terminology Rugby union terminology Sports terminology Sports venues Credit Loans Tennis terminology